Adjustable cam for cable cars



April 7, 1931. c. H. FUGL'E ET AL I ADJUSTABLE CAM FOR CABLE CARS Filed Aug. 28, 1929 I Z8 Z5 3" 522541) 48 3 1 fZZberZW 56m, Jbaepizfii M070,

Patented Apr. 7, 1931 UNITED STATES ATENT I oHAnLEs H. FUGLE, CHARLES H. os'rnmsnne, ALBERT w. MAGLEIN, JOSEPH in. TRUDO, AND ANDY nnwron, or DULUTH, MINnEsorA "ADJUSTABLE CAM non CABLE CARS Application filed August 28, 1929. Serial No. 388,960.

Thisinvention relates to cable operated railway cars and is illustrated herein asembodied in an apparatus for use in disengag ing froma cable the clamping mechanism carried by a car. a Cable operated railways are employed extensively in connection with loading docks, mines, and the like, and in order to switch cars, or to stop one car on a track without stopping the others, etc., it is customary to provide the cars with a clamp mechanism which can be operated manually to grip tlght- -ly or to release the cable.

In practically everycable railway there are stations where the-carsare invariably disen 'gage d from the cablefor switching purposes, or for other reasons, andlitis customary to provide means for efi'ecting automatic" disengagement of the car from the cable at such pointsz-a clamp operating lever projecting laterally from the side of the car and a-cam positioned adjacent to thetrack andin the path of the lever at the point of disengage- -ment being a common form of'a-rrangement. As the car approaches the stationpt-he lever strikes the cam and is moved thereby to opthe cable.

' Such levers and cams may also be utilized to cause theclamping mechanism to engage the cable at predetermined stations as" well.

Generally this isaccomplished by having the lever and cams for effecting engagement of the clamps located on the side of the car opposite to the levers and cams for effecting other points as engagement or disengagement of the cars may be desired. Owing, however,

tothe fact that the cars may be of'various lengths and widths, and the'operating levers maybe positioned differently on difieren't cars, a fixed cam of unalterable dimensions is subject to serious objection. Accordingly,

it isjan object of the presentinvention to provide an improved-camthat is ad ustable to 20 locatedbeneath the car.

accommodate cars of difieret sizes regardless of the locality thereon of the laterally projecting operating levers. i V feature of the invention consists in the provision of a cam having associated with it means for imparting vertical movem'ent thereto. As illustrated, the cam is also provided with meansfor maintaining it in proper' alinement relatively-fto the track during the time it is-being moved vertically.

Still another object of the invention consistsin providing the cam with means for moving it horizontally toward and away from the side of the track. Here also the cam is equipped with means for maintaining it in proper alinement relatively to the track during the time it is being moved horizontally. A Other objects and features of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the specification in the light of the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a viewin side elevation of a cam constructed in accordance with the present incar associated therewith;

Figure 2' 1s a view in side elevation of the crate the clamping mechanism and disengage cam shown in Figure 1 and i Figure 3 is atop plan view of the cam illustrated in Figure 1;

As shown in the drawings, the reference numeral 10 indicates a cam or templet composedof a hollow frame. of metal having an inclined operating face 12. In use, this cam is operated in near proximity to the track 14 of'a cable'railway, in which position it lies in the path of a lever 16 projecting laterally from the side ofa cable operated car 18, which lever is operative to engage or to disengage clamping mechanism (not shown) carried by the car, i'r'rom'the pulling cable It has heretoforebeen stated that the pres ent invention contemplates the provision of amounting for the cam which will permit the latter to be adjusted both vertically'and' horizontally to accommodate cable cars of difierent"dimensions. To this end, the cam is constructed in the following manner: a plurality of spaced apart base members 22 and 24 are provided with upwardly and inwardly extending guide members 26 which overlie and hold in place skid members 28 which are disposed upon the base members 22 and 24. A plurality of upwardly and inwardly extending supporting brackets or members 30 extend from the opposite, spaced skid members 28 and are secured at their upper extremities to a saddle member 32. The saddle member extends forwardly, and, as shown in Figure 2, carries at its forward extremity a collar 34 which has screw-threaded engagement with a shaft 36 that loosely carries the cam 10.

Thus, it will be seen that rotation of the shaft 36, which may be accomplished by applying a wrench to the head 38 of the shaft, imparts vertical movement to the cam 10. It is, of course, desirable at all times to maintain the cam frame parallel to the track 14 in order that the operating face 12 of the cam will be properly positioned with respect to the cars 18 and to this end the apparatus is provided with a bridge member 40 which is carried by the skid members 28, 28 and which in turn carries-a plurality of vertical guide members 42 and 44 which extend through guideways formed in the lower portion of the fence of the cam 10. By means of such a provision, the cam frame is maintained parallel, in proper alinement to, the track during the period vertical movement is imparted to the frame.

It has already been pointed out that the skid members 28, 28 are mounted upon the upper surfaces of the base members 22 and 24 and are held in position by means of the guide members 26, 26. Such a mounting permits horizontal sliding movement of the skid members toward and away from the railway track 14, whereby movement is permitted of the cam 10 toward or away from the cable operated cars. To the end of causing movement of the cam away from the track there is provided a cable 46 extending rearwardly from the bridge member 40 to a winding reel 48 that ismounted upon a shaft 50 and adapted to be operated by means of a handle or power device connected to the outer extremity 52 of the shaft.

It will accordingly be seen that the cam 10 is mounted for horizontal movement toward and away from the track, and for vertical movement relatively thereto and is constructed in such a manner that it will at all times remain parallel, in proper alinement, with the track during movement or adjustment.

Although the invention has been described herein with particular reference to cable operated cars, it is to be appreciated that the invention may be employed in other rail systems, or analogous arts, in which the use of such a cam is contemplated, and that modifications and changes in design and construction may from time to time be made in the illustrated embodiment of the invention by the exercise of mechanical skill and without constituting a departure from the scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent, is:

1. An apparatus for use in connection with cable operated railway cars, said apparatus comprising a cam located adjacent to the track of the railway and means associated with the cam for imparting vertical movement thereto in order that the cam will accommodate cable cars of various dimensions.

2. An apparatus for use in connection with cable operated cars, said apparatus comprising, in combination, a cam located adjacent to a track of the railway, means for varying the vertical position of the cam to accommodate cable cars of various dimensions, and means for maintaining the cam in predetermined alinement with the track during the period the vertical position of the cam is being varied.

8. An apparatus for use in connection with cable operated cars, said apparatus comprising, in combination, a cam located adjacent to a track of the railway, a support for the cam, said cam being mounted upon said support in such a manner that it may be moved horizontally towards and away from the track to accommodate cable cars of different dimensions.

4. An apparatus for use in connection with cable operated cars, comprising, in combination, a cam located adjacent to a track of the railway, a base upon which the cam is slidably mounted for horizontal movement toward and away from the track to accomm0- date cable cars of different dimensions, and means associated with the base for imparting movement to the cam.

5. An apparatus for use in connection with cable operated cars, comprising, in combination, a cam located at a point adjacent to a track of the railway, a support for the cam, means associated with the support for imparting vertical movement to the cam, means likewise associated with the support for imparting horizontal movement to the cam, and means for maintaining the cam in proper alinement with the track during either vertical or horizontal movement thereof.

6. An apparatus for use in connection with cable operated cars, comprising, in combination, a plurality of spaced apart base members, a plurality of slides mounted in the base members, supporting members extending upwardly and inwardly from the slides and joined at their upper extremities to a saddle block, a cam, andmeans extending between the cam and the saddle block for efiecting vertical adjustment of the former.

7 An apparatus for use in connection with cable operated cars, comprising, in combination, a plurality of spaced apart base members, a plurality of slides mounted in the base members; supporting members extending upwardly and inwardly from the slides and joined at their upper extremities to a saddle block, a cam, means extending between the cam and the saddle block for effecting vertical adjustment of the former, and a plurality of spaced vertical guides arranged to engage the cam to maintain it in a predetermined alinement during adjustment thereof.

Signed at Duluth Minn, this 15th day of August, 1929.

CHARLES H. FUGLE. CHARLES H. OSTENBERGk ALBERT W. MAGLEIN. JOSEPH M. TRUDO.

ANDY NEWTON. 

